Sarah Holt
Director
NOVA (1974)
Season 16
PBS' premier science series helps viewers of all ages explore the science behind the headlines. Along the way, NOVA demystifies science and technology, and highlights the people involved in scientific pursuits.
Released March 3, 1974
Episode 55 min
10+
Genres: Documentary
Keywords: tmdb.nature, imdb.scene-during-end-credits, imdb.science-and-technology-documentary, imdb.science, imdb.scientist, awards.emmy-award-winner, awards.emmy-award-nominated + 7 more, tmdb.candid, tmdb.inspirational, tmdb.factual, tmdb.dramatic, tmdb.informative, tmdb.instructive, imdb.nature-documentary
Watch Providers: PBS, PBS, Hoopla, Spectrum On Demand, PBS America Amazon Channel + 2 more, PBS Documentaries Amazon Channel, YouTube TV
Production Companies: WGBH Boston
Network: PBS
Country: United States
Languages:
English
S16E1 - Hot Enough for You?
Was the searing summer of 1988 a taste of things to come? NOVA looks at the greenhouse effect, which portends higher temperatures, rising sea levels and other environmental disasters.
Jan. 17, 1989, midnight
S16E2 - The Last Journey of a Genius
NOVA looks at the bongo-playing scientist, adventurer, safecracker and yarn-spinner Richard Feynman, most recently famous for his role as gadfly of the Presidential Commission investigating the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger.
Jan. 24, 1989, midnight
S16E3 - The Strange New Science of Chaos
NOVA explains "chaos," a new science that is making surprising sense out of chaotic phenomena in nature, from the weather to brain waves.
Jan. 31, 1989, midnight
S16E4 - Back to Chernobyl
NOVA goes to the Soviet Union for an inside investigation of the world's most catastrophic nuclear power accident with correspondent Bill Kurtis.
Feb. 14, 1989, midnight
S16E5 - God, Darwin and the Dinosaurs
In an Idaho classroom, teacher Phil Gerrish puts an unorthodox interpretation on the day's biology lesson. As students take notes, he explains that creationism is a valid scientific explanation for the origin on life. Once relying solely on the literal word of the Bible to make their case, creationists now argue that the scientific evidence is on their side. NOVA reports on this new twist in the long-running battle between creationism and evolution.
Feb. 21, 1989, midnight
S16E6 - Adrift on the Gulf Stream
NOVA explores the importance of the Gulf Stream to ocean life, climate and human history.
Feb. 28, 1989, midnight
S16E7 - Secrets of Easter Island (1)
In this two-part series, NOVA investigates the mystery of Easter Island in the South Pacific. Who built its celebrated statues and why?
March 7, 1989, midnight
S16E8 - Legends of Easter Island (2)
In the second part of this two-part series, NOVA explores ancient legends hold the clues to the violent history of the South Pacific's Easter Island.
March 7, 1989, midnight
S16E9 - The World Is Full of Oil!
Scientific detectives test their ingenuity in the effort to find underground oil deposits.
March 21, 1989, midnight
S16E10 - Confronting the Killer Gene
Arlo, Nancy and Janice each have a 50/50 chance of developing a devastating nerve disorder. A laboratory test can tell them if in fact they will fall victim. In their shoes, would you take the test? Thousands of others face a similar choice: to know, or not know, if they will carry the genetic time bomb of Huntington's disease. NOVA looks at this incurable disease which affects 20,000 people in the US and threatens tens of thousands of others.
March 28, 1989, midnight
S16E11 - The Hidden City
Actor Judd Hirsch narrates this behind-the scenes look at what makes New York City tick. Water, power and waste are the critical systems that usually work, but sometimes break down with disastrous consequences.
Oct. 3, 1989, midnight
S16E12 - The Controversial Dr. Koop
In this profile of the former Surgeon General, NOVA follows events as they unfold in a unique behind-the-scenes account of a man who speaks his mind on AIDS, smoking and abortion.
Oct. 10, 1989, midnight
S16E13 - Design Wars!
Five architects compete for the approval of architecture-obsessed Chicagoans in the contest to build the city's new public library. NOVA looks at the strengths and weakness of each of the suprisingly varied entries.
Oct. 17, 1989, midnight
S16E14 - Echoes of War
The atomic bomb might have ended World War II, but radar was the quiet miracle that won battles. NOVA tells the little-known wartime history of radar.
Oct. 24, 1989, midnight
S16E15 - Decoding the Book of Life
Biologists around the world gear up to decode the three-billion-letter genetic message that describes how humans are made. Ethicists warn that it may not be such a good idea.
Oct. 31, 1989, midnight
S16E16 - Hurricane!
NOVA studies hurricanes—the lurking giants waiting to destroy many coastal areas—by flying straight into one. Scientists hope that such close-up studies will supply the data to make better predictions.
Nov. 7, 1989, midnight
S16E17 - Will Venice Survive Its Rescue?
Increasingly awash in high water, the romantic city of Venice is counting on high-tech floodgates to save it from drowning. Environmentalists worry that the gates may destroy the fragile lagoon that surrounds the city.
Nov. 14, 1989, midnight
S16E18 - What Is Music?
East and West came into direct conflict over trade and power in the 19th century. The West won. NOVA explores how Japan was later able to master Western methods, while China was not. Part three of a four part series.
Nov. 21, 1989, midnight
S16E19 - Yellowstone's Burning Question
The 1988 Yellowstone fire may have been one of the worst in human memory, but nature has had eons of experience with such events. NOVA accompanies scientists who are studying the suprisingly rapid recovery from the blaze.
Dec. 5, 1989, midnight
S16E20 - The Schoolboys Who Cracked the Soviet Secret
NOVA re-enacts a classic case of classroom detection when English schoolboys track down a secret Soviet launch site. Docudrama.
Dec. 12, 1989, midnight
Network: PBS
Episode Runtime: 55 min.
Season Runtime: 55715 min.
Released: March 3, 1974
Last Air Date: Nov. 12, 2025, midnight
Next Air Date: Jan. 21, 2026, midnight
Status: Returning Series
Certification: TV-PG
Common sense age: 10+
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